Archive for the ‘smart’ tag

As far as the OpenHandset Alliance SDK is concerned, in spite of how Jonathan Schwartz feels about it and the 10 million that Google is giving away in developer prizes, the SDK could become an albatross around Google neck, courtesy Java.

Google appears to also have successfully convinced the opensource Mozilla Foundation to promote its own services above and before other compelling interests. This may be akin to special interest groups’ manoeuvrings on Capitol Hill, and certainly begs the question – did Google push the Foundation to go slow on mobile? Certainly, Minimo with its XUL environment and many extensions could have made for a speedier development cycle.

PS:

* Back in 2005, realizing the potential of WAP, I tested XHTML/WML/WMLscript v HTML/Javascript on Nokia emulators, and wondered how best to balance the 2 different development requirements. After all, you want to get the many more people who own a mobile but not a computer, access your services.

As the Google-backed Open Handset Alliance takes shape, I have been testing dominant WAP browsers on my 2-year old touchscreen PocketPC. This resulting post should narrow down the choices for those who follow:

 Deep Fish by Microsoft appears to be the most promising of the lot. Unfortunately, it is in a strict testing phase and no longer accepting registrations. Until then, you can always make do with Internet Explorer for Mobile.
 Opera, arguably the slimmest desktop browser out there, has a paid version- Opera Mobile for $24. But if you do not have a smartphone and/or do not wish to spend any money, try Opera Mini.
 The Mozilla Foundation has the amusingly named Minimo.

Opera Mobile offers tab-browsing like Minimo, and does a better job at handling pop-ups and javascripts than Internet Explorer. And like Minimo, it offers ‘grab and drag’ navigation thus eliminating scrollbars. Opera Mobile also offers subtle other improvements, like allowing you to change your User Agent- a must-have for those websites that recognize mobile browsers, but remain inexplicably unprepared for them. On the other hand, Minimo features XUL [try this in Firefox – chrome://browser/content/browser.xul] that has impressively found its way into Mozilla Amazon Browseretc, and is the most customizable.

Absent from all these is the Nokia Web Browser– the sometime favorite of opensource mobile development. After all, its early emulators are what helped a lot of programmers/developers gain a handle on mobile development long before Google.

As the year-end inches closer, let us look at one significant industry trend:
A potential increase in location-based wireless services [“Where are my kids …no really, WHERE are my kids …and give me that in Lat/Long”]? This could be brought about by a spread of handy ‘location-aware’ productivity tools, such as a GPS-enabled internet-ready Blackberry phone that also functions as a TV. Such tools could tell you when your family members or selected friends move into your vicinity. Based on industry reports, this might be old news in parts of Japan.

The earliest benefit could be in emergency-response which just might be the area most likely to get heavy government funding. Ex: Volunteer Fire Departments being able to access critical layout and hydrant information that they need for machine placement and egress route planning as they respond to a distress call. Or, first-responders being able to retrieve medical history on-the-go. Check out an earlier National Incident Management Systemmemo. Also, take a look at the developments at the WV Statewide Addressing and Mapping Board which plans to implement a statewide Spatial Information System [SIS] using aerial photography etc. The project has been funded in part by Verizon. Its objective is to help emergency-response by integrating mapping with E911, postal and public utility services, and telephone companies. This project was initially started to provide city-style addresses for rural areas so that all areas receive the same level of emergency services. With this broadening of its scope, it could serve as a guide for other states.